Karma Marga
by VyseN
Summary: What goes around comes around.
1. Chapter 1

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto yet, but I'm working on it!

**Karma Marga: Chapter one**

_Corporeal Reanimation_

Yin and yang.

The sun and the moon.

Heaven and earth.

All of them complete opposites, but also a natural part of life as we know it. Together they create equilibrium, two opposing forces creating balance between them. Such is the ancient recipe for harmony in this world, and without harmony there is only chaos.

Demons and evil thrive in chaos, where good fights for harmony. In this world, there exists one place where the battle between good and evil, harmony and chaos, has rearranged the scenery more than once.

The Valley of the End.

A good name for a place where several people, both good and evil, have met theirs!

The last time a battle like this happened here was ten years ago. Two young shinobi, no more than twelve winters old, fought to what almost became their deaths. One of them blonde and bright like the sun, the other was dark and silent like the moon. Their bond was tight like brothers, but the Will of Fire couldn't overcome the darkness.

To gain power, Uchiha Sasuke was willing to sell his soul to the devil. To gain power, he was willing to cut all the bonds with his precious people and live alone. To gain power, he made it his goal to kill the man who destroyed his life four years prior- his older brother Itachi.

Sasuke tried to run from his home, but the light would never leave the darkness alone, for without light, can we truly say there is darkness, or just nothing?

Uzumaki Naruto had lives his life in darkness, but his soul would shine with an inner light that could change even the most evil of men. He would force his light into the darkness of his enemy's heart and thus end the fight with no great bloodshed.

Back then, he was twelve years old and more stubborn than the most crooked nail. He refused to let his brother leave his side for his own foolish ambition… to go to Orochimaru. He knew Sasuke would live to regret his decision, but he would give his life to see to it that Sasuke would know his mistakes before he makes them.

Back then, that was not to be.

Sasuke's darkness was more powerful than all the light Naruto could muster, but know that even Naruto's light would falter when his soul is crying out in pain. The pain of losing someone you care about… your best friend.

To Naruto, nothing was more important than his precious people.

His dream, happiness, money… his life?

All of them expendable if it would mean that his precious people could live in happiness. An admirable soul indeed and this one were born to lead his people into the light.

He might have lost the battle back then.

His light might not have been able to break the darkness clouding Uchiha Sasuke's heart, but he would never give up.

He can never give up!

For he wouldn't be Uzumaki Naruto if he gave up!

Giving up means you're a quitter, and there's no way Uzumaki Naruto could ever be described as such.

Naruto made a promise to bring his lost brother back.

Back to her!

Haruno Sakura, the only woman Naruto would ever love. Or that was what he told himself up to the point where they became more like siblings than lovers. Naruto will always love Sakura with all his heart, but their relationship had too many twists and turns and led them away from the love Naruto had spent his childhood dreaming about.

They had tried dating, but even if they both loved the other, they just wouldn't connect. Naruto might be oblivious to a lot of things, but when it comes to his friends' happiness, he's the most observant guy in the world.

He could see the way she looked at that person. The one she had spent most of her teenage years trying to beat, never really letting go of their friendship. The person would occupy her mind when she was with Naruto, even if that person wasn't there at the time. When they met in the street, they played friendly with each other, but Naruto could tell they both wanted more.

Using his amazing people-skills… or you could say he had a little help from a certain big breasted Hokage, he managed to send the two away on a fake mission. He would see the whole thing through, even if it killed him.

At least this time, he could do Sakura a favor without coming home with a hole in his chest.

When the eight graduates from Naruto's class turned eighteen, six years after Uchiha Sasuke left the village, Naruto finally took his place as the youngest Hokage in Konoha's history. With his newfound political power he managed to do a lot of good for the village.

He fulfilled his promise to Neji, and with his skills as a seals master, he removed and banned the caged bird seal from the Hyuuga clan. Naruto dissolved their old clan system with a branch house and main house, and instead brought all the Hyuuga under one roof. Some old elitist Hyuuga didn't like it, but let's see those old prunes try fighting the youngest Hokage of all time.

The next thing he did was to rebuild the Konoha orphanage and make their living arrangements better. The kids were so happy with their new home that many of them refused to be adopted and stayed in the orphanage. With this act, Naruto had the love of all the children of Konoha, and he couldn't be happier.

With the kids happy, he turned to a problem he had faced years prior. His best friend's love life needed some serious magic.

Now, you shouldn't mess with your friends' love lives, since you have nothing to do with it unless you're a guy and your best friend is a hot chick. You might be able to help her if you're willing to risk your friendship to see if you could become something more.

No sir, our good old friend Uzumaki Naruto was never the type who meddled with his friends lives…

Yes he was!

Naruto knew that Sakura and her lover had been together since that mission he sent them on with Tsunade's help, and he knew they loved each other dearly. The problem lied within the Konoha laws themselves, which said that no woman could in public show her love for a person of her own gender.

That might have put a dampener on Sakura and Ino's love.

But with his Hokage power, Naruto ripped that law to pieces and wrote a new one.

In the new law he claimed love to be a natural thing, but it could not be controlled. To deny some people the chance to love would be the same as to deny them their right to live.

Not long after that, Naruto wed Sakura and Ino legally and he knew that his sister would always be happy.

But with no Sakura, Naruto had decided he would never fall for another woman again.

By the time the legendary Konoha 11 had all turned 21 years old, they were all married. That is, everyone but their beloved Hokage Uzumaki Naruto.

After he took his seat as Hokage, Naruto strived to be the greatest. He also decided he would surpass both his father figures when it comes to skill, and with the help of Hatake Kakashi and his friends, he had managed to surpass his father and Jiraiya in every way.

When it comes to love, I guess you could say he took more after his Godfather.

He was never lonely, but every man will at one point miss having a woman to hold in his arms. Someone to love and cherish and protect them with everything he has. Naruto wanted that, but he could never bring himself to love knowing that his status as a Jinchuriki could mean harm to any woman willing to be with him.

Naruto was not ugly. In fact, he was voted "The #1 Shinobi we would want to see wearing a Speedo" in Kunoichi Monthly whatever that means. Naruto wasn't sure why they would want to see him wearing those silly looking swimming panties, but he guessed it was a compliment.

You want to know how Naruto looked? Well, you all should know how Namikaze Minato looked back when he was alive. You just need to give Minato six whiskers and a slightly vulpine look in his eyes. Naruto was a chip of the old block, and he was proud to carry on his father's legacy as the second Yellow Flash.

If only he could flash through paperwork…

He tried using Kage Bunshin, but for some reason the paperwork grew exponentially with the amount of clones Naruto made.

And for someone who could easily summon thousands of clones, that's saying something!

This brings us back to the day where we started. After a lot of catching up with Naruto and his friends, we now know that our Rokudaime Hokage loves his paperwork almost as much as his five predecessors.

His Will of Fire was legendary in the Elemental Nations, and Naruto was known as one of the eleven most powerful shinobi in the world. The other ten being his old friends in the Akatsuki, who were now lead by the last two Uchiha.

When Naruto killed Pein, he also learned about Uchiha Madara and his plan to use the Bijuu to gain the power of a god. With the Bijuu in his hands, Madara would summon the Tengu God of the Uchiha clan, and join him in the lands of the Gods. To do this, he would need a heir. This heir was supposed to be Uchiha Itachi, but in the end it was the younger brother who proved to be the best choice.

Together, Uchiha Madara and Sasuke lead the Akatsuki against the world's shinobi. They killed thousands, and after a long time fighting, they now had eight Bijuu under their control.

Then which one was left?

Wouldn't it be surprising if I had said something other than Kyuubi? Well, I won't, since it was the nine tailed fox sealed in Naruto who kept eluding their grasp.

No better time than the present to go get it though, right?

The second strongest member of the Akatsuki was sent to collect the last Bijuu, who would be the last piece for their grand puzzle.

Uchiha Sasuke was running towards a big wall he hadn't gazed upon for ten long years. This is the village of his birth, and where all his worst and happiest memories took place.

As he ran, he thought about his former friends. The people who he used to take for granted, and the bonds he cut completely when he left.

'Naruto, you must die for my ambition' the youngest Uchiha thought as he gritted his teeth in frustration.

XOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOX

"Hokage-sama, we have spotted a rogue shinobi running straight at us at great speeds."

Naruto looked up from his paperwork to acknowledge the ANBU standing in front of him.

"You know you don't have to be so formal when it's just the two of us Kiba. We have been friends since forever, and I have asked you to call me by my name every day since I stole this chair from Tsunade."

Kiba just shrugged his shoulders. After going through this with him every day since Naruto entered office, Naruto should have understood that out of everyone in Konoha, Kiba is the most stubborn and that nothing he could say would change the fact that Kiba was ANBU and Naruto was his boss.

Naruto sighed, knowing that this was one battle he was unlikely to win.

"Ok, you mangy mutt. I guess I'll yield this time, but this isn't over."

Both of the shinobi in the Hokage office had a friendly smirk on their faces, knowing very well that it was indeed over. Naruto sat back up in his chair and put on his business face.

"Did our lookout say anything about the shinobi's affiliation?"

Kiba took off his mask so he could look right into Naruto's eyes.

"It's them Naruto… more specifically, it's HIM!"

Before Kiba could blink, a yellow flash was the only sign needed for Kiba to know that Naruto was long gone. The guy might be one of the most powerful people in the bloody world, but he still had to try and become a little less rash.

Oh well, Kiba would have to tell the rest of the Konoha 11 that Uchiha Sasuke would soon be fighting Uzumaki Naruto inside Konoha's border's.

XOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOX

Yin and yang.

The sun and the moon.

Heaven and earth.

All of them complete opposites, but also a natural part of life as we know it. Together they create equilibrium, two opposing forces creating balance between them. Such is the ancient recipe for harmony in this world, and without harmony there is only chaos.

There's only one place worthy of a clash between harmony and chaos, light and darkness.

This place is the Valley of the End, and it is also where two brothers meet again for the first time in four years.

Above the waterfall, two shinobi had claimed a statue as their starting point. Much like it was all those years ago, Uchiha Sasuke took his place on the head of Uchiha Madara's likeness while Naruto stood proudly on top of the Shodai's head.

Sasuke was standing there as stoic as ever with his Akatsuki cloak fluttering in the wind. You could see that he was still wearing that less-than-metrosexual outfit he got from Orochimaru after years of being his loyal lapdog. The boy's hair still shaped like the rear end of a duck, yet there's no one here to enjoy the irony of this.

Uzumaki Naruto was dressed in his new Hokage attire. He had a style similar to his predecessors. He donned the traditional jounin flask jacket outfit complete with the black pants and shirt, which he wore under a black cloak with orange around the edges. His hands were covered in black fingerless gloves like the ones worn by Kakashi. Lastly, he had the red and white cap that was handed down to every new Hokage.

"So Sasuke, I see you've gotten even less sun after you joined the Akatsuki. You're making Sai look tan with your sickly complexion!" Naruto taunted, but the stoic Uchiha didn't answer at all.

"Naruto… Dead or alive, you're coming with me." Sasuke said before he rushed at Naruto at speeds no one could possibly follow.

No one but Uzumaki Naruto that is!

Sasuke came at Naruto with his kusanagi ready to strike, but Naruto didn't even bat an eyelash.

With a great deal of power pressed from his frustration, Sasuke swung his sword at Naruto's head.

He smirked as he saw his sword hit, but it turned into a scowl when Naruto disappeared in a cloud of smoke.

'Kage Bunshin huh? I guess it's still the idiot's only strong point.'

Sharingan spinning wildly, Sasuke quickly located Naruto who was standing right…. behind him.

With a growl that would have made the likes of Kyuubi himself proud Naruto swung a fist at Sasuke who leaned with the swing as he dodged, followed by a few clever moves of footwork and Sasuke was ready to counterattack with a fierce right hook.

Naruto let the punch hit and grabbed hold of Sasuke's right arm and pulled him flush up against himself.

"I see you haven't changed Sasuke. You're still the same person I have defeated before. What makes you think this time will be any different?"

Naruto didn't like the smirk on Sasuke's face.

No, it wasn't a smirk at all. This was the closest thing Uchiha Sasuke had come to a smile in years. An insane smile, sure, but a smile nonetheless.

"You don't get it do you dobe? This isn't just about you!"

Naruto let his hold on Sasuke's arm go as he felt Sasuke load up his Chidori Nagashi, and both ninja jumped apart from each other.

"Understand what teme?" Naruto growled as he started to summon a little bit of his tenant's chakra. Sure Sasuke was strong, but the Kyuubi was much stronger. Even his Sharingan won't be able to push the Kyuubi away anymore… not that Naruto isn't borrowing chakra from the beast, but taking it!

Sasuke chuckled coldly at this.

"Kukukuku… You still believe that Akatsuki's only goal is to capture all of you demon scum? Well, think again. You're just part of how we'll get to our goal, but the goal has and always will be complete control of the shinobi world."

Naruto could feel a cold chill run down his back, even through all the red fiery chakra flowing around coating his body. When he said whole shinobi world, did he mean that they're already working on that goal? That would mean that they're in need of removing obstacles for that goal, and their biggest obstacle at this time is…

Sasuke saw Naruto's eyes widen in realization about what he had just told him.

"I see you understand Naruto? If I don't come back to Madara today, he will launch an all out attack on Konoha and Suna."

Naruto's sky blue's were hidden by his golden bangs, but Sasuke had never really bothered to think about Naruto's pattern. We however do, so we know that when Naruto's eyes are hidden by his bangs, he's about to stop playing nice and deal some serious damage.

"Gloves are off bastard!"

With that said, Naruto erupted into a haze of red chakra looking like flames licking up his body. It's quite the demonic sight if any, but it's also a brilliant technique to make your opponents wet their shinobi diapers.

Of course, this was no ordinary adversary we're talking about here. This was Uchiha Sasuke, one of the most powerful shinobi in the world right now, and protégée of not only Orochimaru of the Sannin, but also Uchiha Madara himself.

The two shinobi were at each other's throats with lightning speed, both pulling off punches with tremendous force and power behind them. They kept on exchanging love taps for at least a solid hour before they flipped apart, both of them breathing heavily.

"I think I know one way I can still beat you here Naruto!"

Naruto wiped some sweat away from his eyes and locked his ruby red demonic eyes with the Uchiha's fully developed Sharingan.

"I don't know Sasuke. I have to admit though, you're keeping up with my two tailed state much better than expected. Although I still have two more tails left of which I have full control over, you still did good without Orochimaru's power. Why won't you quit this silliness and come back to Konoha with me?"

Sasuke threw his head back and let out a hearty laugh, although his heart was cold hence his laughter held a feeling of dread, insanity and pure evil.

"That ship has sailed years ago Naruto. I don't need you or your pathetic little village, because I will be the one who'll stay by Uchiha Madara's side when he becomes a God!"

With that Sasuke blew a whistle and a young shinobi jumped down.

"So you're finally letting me fight, eh Sasuke-sama? I promise I will show enough power to join the Akats…" the boy was cut off when Sasuke stabbed a kunai to his heart.

Naruto was unsure of what to do, but as a leader himself, he couldn't just let someone kill their subjects like they were nothing. A guttural growl flowed out of Naruto's lips as his blood red eyes bored into the nonchalant Uchiha.

"You might recognize this jutsu Naruto, as it was used once before to kill the old fool you used to love like a grandfather. It's a jutsu Orochimaru told me I should use against you if I wanted, and he also told me some interesting details…"

Naruto could feel a cold chill run down his back as two words run through his head.

'Edo Tensei'

Naruto started running towards Sasuke as both of them started summoning chakra. Naruto drawing three tails of Kyuubi's power and Sasuke going through handseals for that dreaded jutsu.

"What do you say about fighting your own father to the death Naruto? That should leave me with time to get away from here at least."

Naruto was screaming and sending fire red chakra tendrils flying all over leaving a trail of destruction behind him.

"I WON'T LET YOU DO THAT TO HIM SASUKE. YOU WOULDN'T HAVE DONE THAT TO YOUR OWN PARENTS… YOUR FATHER… YOUR MOTHER!!"

Sasuke flinched when he heard the dobe mention his parents. How dare he mention his mother when he was fighting?

"Kuchiyose: Edo Tensei"

Naruto yelled and sent a claw of pure demon chakra surging at Sasuke's hands as he was about to do the final handseal. The claw reached its target, and Naruto smirked as he saw Sasuke's right hand be ripped off.

Sasuke screamed as he looked over the damage he just took. Naruto just ripped off his lover!

But his horror soon turned to an evil glee as he saw a coffin slowly slide up from the ground.

"You took away my jutsu Naruto, but I will get them back. I guess anyone who decides to use this jutsu will need to lose an arm or two, so it's no big deal. The best part of this whole thing is that you're about to die by the hand of your own father… so I'll see you later."

With that, Sasuke flashed Naruto a quick smirk before he disappeared in a swirl of leaves.

Naruto would have followed him before he got away, however he couldn't move an inch as he stared at the coffin in front of him. In that wooden casket was the revived body of his father. The man he had looked up to all his life!

"Oh God no, please don't…" tears started streaming down his face as he slowly walked towards the coffin. He was about to open the coffin to face his father in mortal combat when a symbol on the coffin caught his eye.

'Why would my father's coffin have the Uchiha emblem printed onto it?'

Completely weirded out, Naruto took a hesitant step towards the coffin.

'Is this some weird side-effect of Sasuke using this jutsu, or did he make a mistake?'

Naruto took a deep breath, preparing himself before he moved a shaking hand towards the coffin's cover. His hand caressed the rough woodwork as his hand looked for a way to open the coffin, but a sound from inside the coffin broke his trance.

'Is that… crying? Is my father crying inside this box?'

He might be strong enough to kill him and under Sasuke's control, but Naruto could never leave anyone who was crying right in front of him without even attempting to comfort them.

Since he was the only one there, who else would be able to get his dad out of there?

With renewed will, Naruto stepped forward again and grabbed a firm hold on the coffin's cover and pulled with all his might.

A shrill shriek came out of the coffin as Naruto, with the coffin's cover still in his hands, fell on his ass in surprise.

"Don't hurt me anymore… please…"

Naruto might not have seen his father before, and never heard his voice, but he was pretty sure his father didn't sound like a scared woman.

He threw away the excess wood in his hands and looked towards the coffin again.

Well, I guess you could say Naruto was surprised. Sasuke, the boy who had always been so proud of his inability to do wrong… have failed at summoning Namikaze Minato's corpse in the last second, because there was no way the person in that coffin was Naruto's father.

Naruto looked at the shivering woman, shielding herself from the sun and anyone who would be there to hurt her. Naruto swallowed his pride as he took a better look at the horrified woman crouching down in the casket, and he couldn't deny the woman's beauty.

Her skin was a milky white, the shade of skin so many women would kill to call their own. Naruto couldn't help but wonder how her creamy skin would feel like. If her black hair was as soft as it was beautiful. He wanted to run his fingers through her hair and caress her soft skin as he made her his own.

'Oh God, I'm turning into Ero-Sennin!'

Horrified by the thought, Naruto quickly sobered up and got back up on his feet. He took a step towards the frightened woman, but recoiled when she whimpered when he got too close.

"Don't worry, I won't hurt you." Naruto said with what he hoped was a soothing voice. He hadn't needed to comfort a woman for years, and he had never been that good at it to start with anyway.

Two onyx black eyes met his sapphire blue as he kneeled in front of the shivering woman. Naruto felt a blush grace his cheeks as he stared into her teary black eyes.

_Beautiful_

He smiled at her as he reached up to wipe her tears away, only for her to jump away from his touch.

"No one's going to hurt you lady. Not as long as I'm still alive and with you."

The woman stared into his eyes and she couldn't see anything but concern and honesty in his sky blue eyes. She took pride in her ability to read people's intentions from their eyes alone, and it was an ability she used frequently in her career as a kunoichi, so she decided she could trust the man in front of her.

Naruto saw her calm down a little bit and gently wiped her tears away. He blushed as the woman seemed to melt into his touch as she closed her eyes and leaned into his strong hand.

He let his thumb wipe her chin free from tears before he decided to break the silence that had fallen upon the two.

"Why were you in that coffin?"

The woman turned around and saw what the box she had woke up inside really was and jumped out of it and into Naruto's arms. Naruto was surprised, that much was for sure, but he didn't particularly hate the feeling of her in his arms either.

He held her loosely to his chest and listened to her try to get back the control of her voice. "I don't know… I can't remember how…" she broke off as new tears entered her eyes and she started shivering.

"Oh God… Itachi…"

Naruto jumped slightly as he took a firm hold of her and looked her straight in the eyes.

"Itachi? Uchiha Itachi? Was he the one who put you inside that coffin?"

Naruto was unconsciously raising his voice as his anger towards those blasted Uchiha's grew. How many people did they have to hurt? How many lives did they have to destroy before they were happy?

A guttural growl escaped his lips which seemed to frighten the woman even more as she squirmed in his arms trying to get away.

Naruto snapped out of it and stared at her again.

"I'm sorry, it's just that I don't have a good relationship with Uchiha Itachi. Or should that be "had a good relationship" as he is gone from this world?"

Naruto could hear her gasp at this information, which he took as a relieved sigh.

"He's never going to hurt you again."

Naruto was confused as his words seemed to bring the woman into a new fit of sobs as her shoulders started shaking again.

Naruto gently took the woman back in his arms and embraced her. He could feel her small hands grab hold of his battle weary shirt as she cried softly into his shoulder seeking comfort in Naruto's warm embrace.

"Itachi… what was he to you?"

Naruto could feel the woman tense in his arms before he heard her whisper quietly.

"He was...my..my..son..."

Naruto's eyes widened at these news. He shook the woman to get more information out of her, but it seemed all the events of the day was enough to make her lose consciousness, and who are we to blame her? Wouldn't you be scared and confused if you one day woke up in a dark and tight place which later was identified as a coffin, and the last thing you could remember before waking up was your own son killing you, and then you learn that he was dead? I'm not claiming to understand her feelings, but I do believe even someone like me would be distressed to wake up like that.

Naruto picked her up and looked around. It was clear to him that he couldn't bring her back to Konoha yet, as she was supposed to be long dead. Dead for almost fifteen years!

No he had to bring her somewhere else, and luckily he knew that Yamato had created several safe houses in this area in case a war should ever break out.

Making sure the gorgeous woman in his arms was comfortable, Naruto headed towards the nearest house so he could tend to her until she felt ready to return to Konoha with him.

Sasuke hadn't revived Naruto's father with his horrible jutsu. He had revived his own mother! Uchiha Mikoto was alive once again, and this time she would stay that way. That was the least Naruto could do for a woman who have suffered as much as she has, and he would make sure she would be ok.

As he jumped through the forest, only one thing was on his mind.

"Sasuke… what have you done?"

!END CHAPTER ONE!

**AN/** _Ok, I know I should be updating one of my other fics since they're all overdue, but I've been…busy… no, I've been lazy! So very, very lazy!  
I do have the next chapters for both Trying it on for Size and my NaruBleach xover close to completion though, so I hope you'll hold on a little while longer. This chapter was beta'ed by my good friend (online that is xD) TrueSalvation, so check his work or face tentacle yaoi in your mailbox!_

Karma Marga: The path to salvation following disinterested action.


	2. Chapter 2

**Karma Marga: Chapter Two**

_Oh Karma, you silly goose_

You can't really call Uzumaki Naruto spoiled.

He has never really had the pleasure of having anyone spoil him, even though Sarutobi and Iruka both managed to get close with their ramen-flings back when he was a kid.

The thing was that he always _earned_ those meals somehow. Be it because he helped clean up something, because he passed a test or simply just to celebrate a joyful occurrence. And it's not like it was a regular thing either.

No, he has never been spoiled like the other people of his generation.

Most of them were the sons and daughters of the clan heads, and thus they got special attention and training because of their status. Sakura might not have been from a prominent clan, but her academic skills ended up putting her high on every sensei's list while in the academy, and at home she was her parents' little princess.

Maybe it was time for someone to spoil Naruto a little bit as well?

It wouldn't hurt just to give him a little boost sometimes, would it?

If the gods decided to shine a little light on him and let someone spoil him, he knew exactly what he wanted.

He wanted to feel what he was feeling right now as he ran through the thick forest with a dark haired goddess in his arms.

Sasuke would have a fit if he knew that Naruto had not only discovered Uchiha Mikoto in the coffin Sasuke summoned, but also found the Uchiha's mother to be incredibly attractive.

Is this perhaps considered borderline necrophilia?

Naruto can't help but wonder, but the thought itself was quickly shot down as her warmth penetrated his guard as she unconsciously snuggled a little closer to the man carrying her bridal style through the forest as they headed for the closest safehouse.

'She looks so fragile,' he thought as he let his gaze strafe over her frail features.

The safehouse he was heading for is the same one Yamato created with his Mokuton jutsu back when they headed out for their first mission together, supposedly to meet Sasori's contact on the Heaven and Earth bridge, and they had later added seals and genjutsu to keep it hidden from enemy shinobi. The only ones able to find it are ANBU and Naruto's best jounin since they needed a seal on their body to cancel out the effects of the genjutsu unless they wish to take a dive head first into a deep ravine and fall to their death.

I don't think anyone would want that, but it's not as if anyone knew that would happen anyway.

Feeling the slight shimmer of his surroundings as he walked, Naruto entered the genjutsu field and headed towards the safehouse. It looked just as it did when Yamato made it all those years ago, only now Naruto had turned it into his own personal hideout, complete with a little training ground for himself to train his jutsu away from monkey eyes, friendly or not.

He noticed the woman in his arms started breathing irregularly and twitching in her sleep, and he softly let his hand touch her forehead so he could check her temperature.

'She seems to be running a small fever here. I should probably get her to bed quickly so she can get better quickly.'

He hurried inside the house, heading straight for the bedroom where he gently put her down on a bed. As a shinobi, Naruto has learned to never underestimate a kunoichi, but he couldn't help but think that this woman looked so frail and delicate.

Her pearly white skin looked so perfect, and as a man, he couldn't help but let his eyes wander over her sleeping body. Her hair looked matt in the light, and her lips were turning blue from lack of blood circulation, so he snapped back into action.

He couldn't let another person suffer because of Sasuke. Not again, not ever!

He shot through the house, heading for the bathroom to get a wet cloth for her forehead. He wasn't used to tending to sick people, but he had seen how Ino had taken care of Sakura when she was sick, and decided to emulate her. For a guy who had never been sick, he really should ask more questions from normal people.

"God, I should get someone to help me with her. I don't even know who she is, and I can't even begin to imagine what she would feel when she wakes up and finds a total stranger with her."

As he filled a small bowl with water, he looked into the mirror. Not surprisingly, he looked pretty tired after the fight with his old teammate. Grabbing the bowl and a towel, he walked back to the room where he left the unconscious woman.

Entering the room, Naruto wasn't prepared for what he saw. The woman was standing up, her clothes around her ankles as her hands roamed her body. He tried his very best to respect her privacy, although she wasn't really helping with the way her hands moved over every perfect curve of her body. Her dainty hands were roaming over her ivory skin as if she was proving to herself that she was really there.

Blushing up a storm, he looked away and coughed to get her attention. The woman jumped at the sudden noise and stared at him with confusion clear in her eyes and a healthy blush covering her face from the embarrassment that comes with getting caught roaming her own body by some strange man.

"I'm glad to see you're feeling better miss, but you should really go back to bed," Naruto said gently, trying his best to keep his eyes from taking in the sight of her body. Most men would probably have tried to take advantage of this situation, but luckily for the woman, Naruto was not "most men".

She stared back at him, seemingly forgetting her state of dress… or lack thereof.

"Who are you?" she asked before coughing sharply. After all, her voice had not had much of a workout since that day so long ago.

Naruto blushed again. Here he was, the god damned Hokage of Konohagakure no Sato, a brilliant ninja and a political genius, and he forgets his manners so easily in front of a beautiful woman.

"I'm sorry for my lapse in manners miss, my name is Uzumaki Naruto."

He could see the surprise in her eyes. Did she know him? Well, it's not surprising seeing as his name was known pretty much all over the world. The jinchuriki of the Kyuubi no Kitsune, son of the Yondaime Hokage and also the late Jiraiya's priced pupil. Oh, and let's not forget that he's still the Rokudaime Hokage and the most feared foe any enemy ninja could ever stumble across.

He watched as she stumbled around from the shock- her legs weak from lack of use. This woman had been summoned with that disgusting jutsu, so does this mean she's dead?

He took a step forward, trying to approach her gently and help her back to bed. However, as she noticed his close proximity to herself, she jumped away with a fearful expression in her eyes. An expression he had not seen since he was a young genin. It was a look of both fear and disgust… the look only reserved for the jinchuriki.

He stopped his approach and sighed. She obviously knew who and what he was now, and she was not about to let him get closer.

He walked over the bed stand and put down the bowl of water on top of the towel he brought. 'Way to go Naruto,' he thought to himself with a bitter grin on his face. "I'm sorry miss," he said again, his voice low and full of sadness, "I'll leave this here for you. I'll make sure you'll get to Konoha safely in the morning, but for now please try to get some sleep."

With that said, Naruto left the room and a very bewildered woman. Was this really the demon boy she remembered? But he was just a little boy, so how come this person looked so much like him?

No, it had to be a coincidence. This could not be the Uzumaki Naruto she remembered, because that Naruto was only a little child, no older than her youngest son.

Suddenly she felt a chill run down her spine.

The thought of her son.

Her family.

There was something she just couldn't quite remember, and it had something to do with her family. Were they alright? While she didn't have much love for Fugaku, he was still her husband, and she would honor their marriage to the day she died. And don't forget that he did give her two beautiful children. Her little boys, Itachi and Sasuke.

She slumped down on the bed, holding her head in her hands as images flew through her mind. Images of death and destruction. Of her husband's lifeless body, lying in a pool of his own lifeblood. An image of a shadow approaching her, the glint of steel and the horrible stench of blood oozing from the shadow, and then, two bright red Sharingan eyes spinning.

She reeled back on the bed and let out a bloodcurdling scream.

-

In the living room downstairs you could hear the sound of feet pacing. For the first time in years, Naruto didn't know what to do. He had once again proven to himself that he was still stronger than Sasuke, and he had won yet another battle with his former friend. That much is easy to figure out, since that happens all the time, but try figuring out what to do with a recently revived dead woman who happens to hold your very being in contempt. He had no idea what he should do.

'Should I call for someone to help me? She probably won't let me help her, and I'm not sure we have any medic ninja available at the moment, and I don't think I can trust anyone but Sakura with this.'

He stepped up to the wall and glared at the paint.

"Why does women have to be so God damn complicated?" he asked before bashing his forehead into the wall.

Then suddenly he heard the woman he left upstairs let out a horrible scream.

Did someone find them already? That was supposed to be impossible, so what happened?

He ran up the stairs four steps at a time, and bounded into her bedroom ready for a fight.

"What's wrong?" he yelled, looking at the woman rocking back and forth on the bed, hugging her knees to her chest. Tears where streaming down her cheeks and her bloodshot eyes were red from crying.

Oblivious to a woman's feelings he may be, but Naruto knows what to do in times like these. He hurried over to the bed and scooped the woman up in his lap, and pulled her into a warm hug.

"Don't cry princess, please don't cry," Naruto cooed softly as he let his fingers gently wipe the tears from her cheeks, never noticing the new nickname he had just awarded the crying woman. "You're safe here with me, I promise. No one will hurt you as long as I'm around, so please calm down and tell me what's wrong."

Mikoto tried to struggle from his grasp at first, but she needed human contact. She needed to feel something real, if only to prove that she was indeed alive. She could feel his strong arms wrap themselves protectively around her, and his warmth and his scent were filling her senses. How could this be the brat she remembered?

A couple of minutes later, she had calmed down enough to speak, but didn't leave his embrace and Naruto didn't seem to mind. She looked into the azure blue eyes of the man who held her, knowing she needed answers.

"W-why am I here?" she asked, already fearing the answer to that question.

Naruto arched an eyebrow at the question. He was expecting questions, or maybe some answers, but this wasn't what he was expecting at all. Pulling her from his chest, he looked into her eyes, noticing how frightened she looked. 'I guess she's entitled to fear, especially after what she went through.'

"You're here because I brought you here," Naruto answered cryptically.

Mikoto gaped at the answer, but decided to follow the answer up with another question.

"I mean, where am I, and how did I get here?"

Naruto's eyes had a gleam of mischief in them, and he decided to keep playing with her. He figured that getting her annoyed with him would be better than having her afraid of whatever was bothering her, and if there's one thing Naruto is good at, it's annoying people out of their minds.

"This is a Konoha safehouse, near the Heaven and Earth bridge, and I carried you here in my arms."

Inner-Naruto was dancing in glee. He hadn't played a prank on anyone in a while, and this was getting interesting if he was translating the darkening eyes of the woman correctly.

Mikoto was getting annoyed now. How dense is this person?

She fought down the blush from the image of him carrying here in his strong arms, and her eyes quickly scanned his upper body. He might be an idiot, but God damn this man was hot. Shaking her head, she glared at him.

"Alright, if that's the way you want to play it, I'm game." Mikoto said with a huff, pulling herself from his lap and plopping back down on the bed. "How did you find me, and what happened to me? How can you be Uzumaki Naruto when he's only an 8 year old brat, and do you know what happened to my family?"

Naruto decided to stop playing now, since he wasn't in the mood for a beating and he knew no enemy was as dangerous as a pissed woman.

"Alright I'll tell you everything I know," he said, getting into a more comfortable position on the bed. "It all started when I was fighting an old friend of mine. He betrayed Konoha many years ago, and I've been hunting him ever since and we have met up and fought many times since then. This time, we battled at the Valley of the End and our battle had been raging for a while before I started to get the upper hand. Sensing this, my old teammate decided to use a disgusting jutsu to bring back my father so I would have to fight him, by using the forbidden jutsu "Edo Tensei". I was getting tired already, and knew I wouldn't be able to fight my own father, even if I was at full power, so I tried taunting him to make him lose his concentration."

Mikoto was silently absorbing every word the blond man was spouting at her. What kind of a sick son of a bitch would use a jutsu like this to fight a friend? And how could anyone betray Konoha like it meant nothing? And why did he summon her? She decided she needed to hear more.

"He managed to summon a coffin before he ran away, and I was as ready as I could ever be to face my father in a battle to the death. Then I noticed that the coffin Sasuke summoned had the Uchiha-emblem engraved on the lid, and I could hear you inside. So I opened to coffin, found you inside and took you here."

That's where Mikoto noticed something.

"Sasuke? As in Uchiha Sasuke?" she asked, her voice trembling in anticipation of the answer.

Naruto looked confused for a moment before nodding. The silent confirmation of her question made Mikoto break out crying again, and Naruto was afraid he had said something wrong or particularly insensitive to make the woman break out in tears again.

"W-what did I say? I apologize if I said something that upset you."

Mikoto wiped her tears and looked at the blond man again. She had just received knowledge of her youngest son being not only a traitor, but an honest to God rotten bastard as well. What did she do wrong do deserve this?

"No, you didn't do anything wrong Naruto. It's just that… Sasuke… he is my son, and as his mother it's not easy to hear what kind of person he turned out to be."

You know the feeling you get when someone gives you news that totally blows your mind? You know, the way you'll stand there like an idiot, completely unreachable and not knowing what to do or say… well, that's what Naruto was feeling right now.

His mouth was opening and closing in two second intervals, like a fish caught on land. Mikoto couldn't help but giggle at his expression. Sure, she had created a somber mood with her news, and his news didn't give her any reasons to be all happy and full of pep either, but she could not deny that he looked absolutely undeniably adorable.

She giggled again and raised a hand up to his cheek when noticing that his mouth had decided to stay open, and she gently closed it.

"You don't want anything to fly in there, now do you Naruto-kun?" she giggled.

Naruto snapped back to the same plane of existence as she was currently living on, and he looked deeply into her eyes. Her eyes were dark like dual pools of ink, but as beautiful as the night sky. He blushed and for a moment he lapsed back to old habits as he scratched the back of his head in embarrassment.

"I'm sorry, I guess I spaced out for a second," then he remembered what she had told him, and his face adopted a mournful look. "I guess that makes you Uchiha Mikoto then?" he asked, earning him a nod from the woman. Naruto took a deep breath and stared at her again. "You have been dead for over ten years Mikoto-san, so a lot has happened since you left us."

Mikoto's eyes widened at the news. This wasn't a very good day for her, and to be honest, the day of her death still feels like it happened on that very day. All of this added up, and she could feel a headache approach, making her groan a bit and clutch her hands to her temples.

The next hour went by quickly as Naruto filled Mikoto in on everything she had missed since her death, and Mikoto was falling deeper into a depression. She felt as if it would have been better if she had remained dead, but here she was… alive again, talking to the unfortunate son of the Yondaime of all people. She had always thought that her own children were perfect, and she had pegged Naruto as a troublemaker and a nuisance at best, but she was proven wrong.

In retrospect, she should have seen the signs earlier. Naruto would never look down at people or hate anyone, although God knows he has every right to do so, but he always kept on working harder to keep his peers safe and gain their trust, and look where he was now. The pariah of Konoha was now their greatest shinobi warrior… their Hokage. And what happened to her sons? Both her sons betrayed the country and village she loved with all her heart… her home. Both of them had killed Konoha shinobi in cold blood, and her oldest son was even the one who had killed her.

She couldn't help but see the irony in this whole deal. Her sons and family were practically worshipped as royalty in Konoha, while Naruto used to be the perfect scapegoat for the villager's hatred to fall upon. Her sons grew up with riches and people who adored them, while Naruto was hated by everyone but the Ichiraku's and the Hokage. Her sons were hailed as prodigies, while Naruto was pegged as a talentless loser no one with half a brain would dare help because they feared him gaining power would just make it easier for him to kill them all in the end.

All of this should lead to her sons growing up to be loyal to their friends and village, and great men as well as shinobi, yet they both turned out to be evil bastards without honor. Naruto on the other hand had always claimed he'd protect everyone, that he would become the greatest and in the end their Hokage. Everyone had laughed at him, sneering at the hyperactive child and trying to destroy his dream with mean words, yet he always shrugged it off, and he had proven everyone wrong. He was the strongest shinobi in the village, just like he promised. He was the Hokage of Konoha, loved by everyone and he had earned their trust, just like he had promised. In Mikoto's eyes, the blond man had grown up to be her dream man.

Strong, kind, loving and with the brightest eyes imaginable. And don't forget that the man was hot as hell… don't you think for a second Mikoto didn't notice, she is a woman with urges after all, and damn good taste in men.

But hot as he may be, the revelations received about her children and family brought her down low, and she could feel the tears press behind her eyelids before they managed to break free. Naruto just let the distraught woman cry her sorrows out, sensing that a good cry would do the recently revived woman some good. The silence had gone on for ten minutes before Naruto decided to break the tension.

"Mikoto-chan," he began, "if you wish for me to bring Sasuke back to you in one piece, I will do everything I can to do so."

Mikoto's eyes snapped back up and connected with Naruto's sky blues. She could see it in his eyes that he meant every word he said. He would give up everything he knows if it would bring her happiness from having her son back with her. Everything he had worked so hard for, he was willing to give up for her, as bringing Sasuke back would without a doubt mean trouble for him.

For the first time since the early days with her husband, Mikoto could feel her heart skip as she looked at a man. She couldn't deny the fact that Fugaku was gone, as she had died a bit after him, and had seen his dead body. He might have seemed cold to anyone who didn't know the man, but he had a warm heart and loved his family, and she had loved him. What would Fugaku say if he could see her now? She was given a second chance at life, and she had been thinking about spending her life mourning her family alone… what the hell was wrong with her?

Fugaku would have been disgusted with her actions. He always valued the mindset of a person who would be able to stand his ground, no matter what kind of resistance he faced. To accept their pain, live with it and move through it to find happiness. That was the kind of person Fugaku had been, and that was the kind of person she wanted to be, and… that was the kind of person Naruto was.

Naruto could see the change in her posture as she looked back up at him, eyes gleaming with conviction and a hidden power he couldn't help but find incredibly attractive.

"You don't have to do that for me Naruto-kun," Mikoto said, shocking the blond kage. "You don't have to bring Sasuke back as that man is not the son I remember raising. I gave birth to Uchiha Sasuke all those years ago… I gave him life, and now Sasuke made me return to life again, giving me a second chance for happiness."

Mikoto moved closer to Naruto, eyes filled with a strange expression that made Naruto draw a deep breath without noticing.

"As far as I'm concerned, that makes us even!" she stated firmly as she let her hand stroke gently across his whiskered cheeks. Naruto could feel his cheeks turning a bright red as a blush that would have made Hinata proud graced his cheeks.

Both of these people had suffered great loss, and both of them had decided to look to the future with a positive attitude. However, they both knew a pain so strong it saturated your entire being, leaving them with a hole in their heart. But now that they had connected through this pain, they had established a bond, and together they would fill the hole in the others heart.

Naruto looked into her eyes, forgetting his own doubts. Just a couple of hours ago, this woman looked at him with eyes like the villagers he remembered from his childhood, but it had all changed when he found out who she was and they managed to fill in any blank spots in her memories. Their souls had touched each other, and two complete strangers had found love at first sight in the least expected place.

Sasuke had tried to summon Naruto's father to kill him, but had ended up unknowingly summoning his own mother instead, and screwing up the handseals he had created a technique that would completely revive a person from death. Without knowing it, Uchiha Sasuke had created one of the greatest jutsu in the world, and he had tried to use it to hurt Naruto, but instead he might have given Naruto the one thing he had wished for his entire life.

He had given him someone who would love him unconditionally.

Sasuke had made his bed, so now he would have to lie in it.

As Naruto and Mikoto's lips met in a loving kiss, the last thing on Naruto's mind was something that will define this story.

'Ain't Karma a bitch'

And the two lovers united for the first time of many.

AN:// HOLY SHIT, this chapter was hard to type. I completely lost my marbles here, and couldn't figure out where I wanted this to go. To be honest, it was my own fault as everything I wanted was to provide fluffy smut in a severely underused pairing, but I didn't think I would dislike writing this second chapter this much. The first one was easy, and I love Naruto/Mikoto together to the point where I can (and will) promise you I'll write another fic with this pairing later on, but as I can't stand writing adult Naruto when I never wrote his background first. Call it nitpicking, but I want to start at Naruto's genin days and write his life my own way, and then introduce Mikoto in some way or another (I already know how I want to do it though, so that story will be a lot longer and meatier than this one) and have them grow together both as lovers and characters in a fanfic.

I'm sorry I took so long to get this out here, but I haven't had much time for writing because of university taking up a lot of my time, and when I did have the time, I couldn't come up with anything.

To make up for this travesty, I'll make the epilogue full of lemons and fluff, and I'll finish off this fic with a huge WAFF!! Smut-lovers and perverts, please stick with me for the epilogue, and I'll promise I'll do my best to make it worth your time. For the rest of you, please look out for my next Naruto/Mikoto-fic which will be published within a couple of months. The epilogue will be up within a month's time as well, so I'll see you then with more information.

Thank you!


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